


We Make Quite A Team

by notmadejsbian



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: 1920s/1930s, M/M, Murder, Tinsworth, both are dumb and don't know how to express their feelings, cause well crime time baby, cc's a detective trying his hardest, ricky's making that more difficult than it should be
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-06-06
Packaged: 2019-11-15 10:39:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18071855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notmadejsbian/pseuds/notmadejsbian
Summary: C.C. Tinsley isn't the biggest fan of Ricky Goldsworth, but when it comes down to tracking down a new notorious criminal, he's his best chance at catching this crook.While following this case, the two learn more about each other's pasts, each other's feelings for each other and how fucked up the malicious Dr. Fear really is.





	1. Help Wanted

C.C. drew a short breath as he knocked on the old wooden door. He stared at his feet as seconds of silence fell over him. Maybe this is my chance to run before I get myself into- his thought was interrupted by the door being flung open hastily and him being dragged inside by his tie. You think he’d get used to this by now, but each time still scares the shit out of him. His body was slammed back against the now shut door and he could the blade of a knife being pressed up against his neck, not yet cutting the skin.

“It’s been a while, Mr. Goldsworth” C.C. let out a nervous chuckle. 

There was a small groan and the knife lowered. C.C. let out a small sigh of relief. The hallway light was turned on revealing the shorter man in front of him. Ricky Goldsworth, one of the most notorious and most pain-in-the-ass criminals C.C. has ever faced was always a sight for sore eyes. 

“I could’ve fucking guessed it was you, detective. And I told you to stop calling me that” the shorter man said in a low, harsh tone, “You’d think we’d be past formalities by now”

C.C. straightened up his tie and tried not to look as startled as he felt, “I know, I just do it to piss you off”

“Quit while you’re ahead, how did you find me?” Ricky said crossing his arms.

“You’re getting soft on me, you let me follow you home the last time we ran into each other, remember?” C.C. smirked.

“And what a great evening that was, starting off with me almost breaking your nose and then you-” Ricky’s face flushed as he trailed off, “I assume you’re here to arrest me, detective?”

C.C.’s face heated the smallest bit, “Actually, no. I’m here because…”

Never in his whole career did he expect himself to get this low.

“…Because I need your help.”

Ricky laughed. It wasn’t the “crazy, homicidal maniac” laugh that C.C. was used to, this was a genuine laugh, and that made his heart race almost as much. 

“You- You cannot be serious” Ricky wheezed. He put his arms out in front of him, “Just slap the cuffs on, you got me in good humor”

“I’m serious!” C.C. made a frustrated noise, "My job's on the line."

Ricky’s laughter finally died down but his smile still remained, “This is a new one even for you, Tinsley.”

“I have no one else to turn to, believe me, you’re my last resort.”

“What could you possibly need my help for?”

“I’ll explain on the way.”

“On the way? I’m not going anywhere with you until I know what you’re up to.”

C.C. groaned, he was wasting time even bothering with Ricky but he really had no other choice at this point. “A criminal a few towns over, starting to get a rep over there, but no one seems to know who it is or where to find him. A real sicko even compared to you.”

“So that’s where you come in, the dashing detective from Chicago who hasn’t been able to arrest a single man cause he’s too much of a push over?” he said as he stepped closer to the lanky detective.

“I could arrest you right now if I wasn’t begging for your help”

“Oh you wouldn’t and you won’t!” Ricky grinned, “You’ll do whatever I say, detective.”

“Our last meeting I remember you saying the opposite” C.C. gave Ricky a grin that made his stomach bundle in knots, “I believe your exact words were-“

Ricky was fuming, “God, would you shut up!” C.C. tried not to laugh over how Ricky looks when he’s flustered.

“And where do I fit into this little charade?”

“I take it you remember some of the more illegal things you’ve done, and you know more about the crime world than I do”

“That’s for sure”

“Then I need your help figuring out how to track this bastard down.”

“Sure does sound like a plan you’d come up with. Sure, I’ll help you, I’d love to see you get your ass handed to you from someone other than me”

“I figured as much. Now, we’ve got a train to catch in thirty minutes”

How would C.C. ever regret this decision?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the first time I've ever posted a fic of mine so hope y'all enjoy!!
> 
> Also disclaimer I don't ship sh//yan I just like Ricky and C.C. don't give me hate for that lol
> 
> Feel free to shoot me an ask/message on tumblr @madejsbian


	2. It's Not a Honeymoon

The train ride was taking uncomfortably long to both C.C. and Ricky, but mostly because they used to being at each other’s throats instead of sitting next to each other. They sat in silence for the first half of the trip. Ricky sat there with a satisfied grin on his face; he loved the fact that C.C. really became desperate enough to get his help. On the other hand, C.C.’s mind wandered, his leg bouncing or his hands fiddling with his train ticket. 

“Finally able to shut up?” Ricky said as he put a cigarette between his teeth. 

“I can start up again if you’re getting too bored, I’ve got plenty things on my mind,” C.C. replied with a faint smile.

“Oh, I highly doubt there’s much going on in that pretty head of yours,” Ricky pulled the lighter from his coat pocket, lighting his cigarette.

“You’d be surprised.”

Ricky blew smoke in C.C.’s face, which wasn’t unlike him to do, before smiling, “Surprise me.”

C.C. waved his hand in front of his face trying to move the smoke, he hated when he did that, “Well, for starters, I’m thinking about how fucked I am if I don’t catch this guy and have to tell Chief McClintock I brought you along with me to Aurora” Ricky let out a small laugh. 

“You think this is funny?”

“Well yeah, just imagining McClintock ripping you a new one for bringing me along with you on a case! I bet you’d be bright red trying to explain yourself,” Ricky laughed as he blew another cloud of smoke in C.C.’s direction. 

“I’m only bringing you along for your help, Ricky, this isn’t a honeymoon.”

“I never said it was and I certainly wasn’t thinking it, maybe you have other plans, detective.”

C.C. rolled his eyes, “Are you always like this?”

“Only ever with you, helps time pass, besides you’re easy to tease,” Ricky said as he leaned back in his seat. 

\-------------

Their train rolled into the station about half an hour later where they were greeted with a thunderstorm rolling over the city. 

It started out to be a very unpleasant start to their escapade. C.C.’s shoes and socks were drenched as he hiked up five city blocks in the pouring rain. Even his hat and favorite trench coat did little to protect him from the weather. C.C. could barely hear himself think over the heavy falling rain and the voice that trotted along beside him. Ricky sure knew how to complain, that was very apparent. 

“Why the fuck do we have to trek across town to find a hotel? We’ve passed three already!” the man whined. 

“Because I said so, Ricky,” If Ricky continued whining, C.C. didn’t hear it over the rain pouring on his head and the sound of distant thunder. Finally, the sign for their destination came into view, the Belvedere Hotel.

The two strolled into the hotel lobby with the sounds of their sloshing shoes echoing through the primarily empty room. The woman at the front desk was friendly enough, making small remarks about the weather and handed the keys over to the detective. 

“Allow me to get your bags,” a young bellhop said, waiting for a response before he took their luggage from their hands. 

“No thank you, we can manage” C.C. said with a small smile, they did pack light. He swore he heard Ricky scoff next to him. 

The bellhop pushed the button to the fifth floor and the three said silent in the elevator. C.C. noticed that Ricky had been stuck to his side ever since they got off the train, not that he was going to point it out now. The boy let them off on their floor and directed them to their room. 

C.C. opened the door to the small hotel room with Ricky following behind him. C.C. was used to a bedroom this size, Ricky not so much. 

“Are we sharing a bed, Tinsley?” Ricky said with a smirk as he threw his bag into one of the nearby chairs.

“Like I said before, this isn’t a honeymoon,” C.C. went slightly pink, avoiding looking at his company, investing himself in pulling out his papers and scattering them across the desk. “Besides, I was planning you sleeping on the floor anyway.”

Although C.C. couldn’t see it, Ricky still rolled his eyes. 

“So you never actually told me who this guy is,” Ricky walked up to the taller man who already was seated at the desk organizing his papers. 

“Caused some of the most disturbing string of murders I’ve seen in a while, the guy’s a real devil on Earth,” C.C. turned and looked at his company, “even more so than you.”

Ricky just gave him a sarcastic smile. 

“The suspect seems to have done everything in the books, but I’m more focused on the five bodies found without heads over the past month.” 

“No heads, that’s all?”

“’No heads, that’s all’, Jesus, you’re insane. And no, not only have none of the heads been found,” C.C. shuffled through some of his papers, holding up one report to Ricky, which he took, “But the bodies they have found have were drugged and mutilated prior to their death, so yeah, this guy’s a real bastard.” 

Ricky took the papers and read them over. C.C. sat quietly and listened to the rain outside. He continued; “The officers here have a name to the suspect but haven’t matched it with anyone yet so it could be anyone in this city.”

“I’m impressed, you’ve done your homework” Ricky complimented as he handed C.C.’s papers back to him.

C.C. took them with a small blush on his face, “Well, it is my job.”

“So what’s this fucker’s name?” Ricky rested his hands on the desk.

“Dr. Fear”

Ricky tried hard not to laugh. “Dr. Fear?” his voice almost cracking.

C.C.’s face broke into a small smile, “Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m not sure if that’s really his name or if he’s even a doctor, but pretty good name for a low life like him.”

“Got any clues to where this guy’s hiding out?”

“One place has matched up as the last place the five victims have been last seen at,” C.C. drew back the curtains of the window in front of them and pointed to a funeral home and mortuary, right across the street, The sign read 'Miller's Funeral Home' but was almost masked by the rain. “There” 

Ricky leaned forward to look closely at the ominous building facing them. C.C. felt himself tense up with his company so close, “I- Well, I figure we find out what we can from locals and the police here before we just barge in.” 

“I’m still impressed, Tinsley, you seem to actually know what you’re doing here.”

“Let’s hope everything goes according to plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry but these chapters are probs gonna be pretty short I'm working on it lol, hope y'all are enjoying it so far!!
> 
> Feel free to shoot me a message/ask on tumblr @madejsbian


	3. Sleeping Arrangements

C.C. sat at that desk for the next few hours. The clock ticking on the wall and the faint thunder outside were the only noises he’d tune in to. He was deep in his thoughts, mentally putting pictures up with thumbtacks in his mind when a voice drew him out of it. 

“It’s getting late, don’t you think, Tinsley?” Ricky said from behind a newspaper on the couch in the farthest corner of the small space. 

The clock on the wall read 11:47, he had been reading for over four hours at this point. C.C. stretched back in his chair and then rubbed his eyes; he probably should’ve pulled out his glasses. 

“This isn’t late for me” he said as he ran a hand through his hair, brushing the few wild strands out of his face before they just flopped back into place. 

“You haven’t eaten anything since the train ride, either,” he said peering up from behind his paper. Ricky sounding concerned for C.C.’s well-being at the moment was odd to even himself. 

“Well, you didn’t exactly offer me dinner” C.C. gave a small smile as he loosened his tie.

“I did about two hours ago but you just waved me off. I guess that’s what I guess for trying to be nice to you” Ricky returned the same smile. 

C.C. looked at his hands as he felt his cheeks get red, “Oh, sorry, guess I kinda tuned out”

“It’s fine, you’re focused on something other than me for once” the other man smirked as he set his newspaper aside before standing up. 

“Mm,” is all C.C. replied with, still rubbing his eyes. 

“So what are our sleeping arrangements, Tinsley, since frankly I want to go to sleep” Ricky said grabbing his night clothes before slipping into the bathroom to change. 

“Honestly, you’d think we’re past formalities” C.C. mocked Ricky’s statement from earlier that morning, “Just call me C.C.”

“Fine, C.C.” Ricky strained his name from the other room, “What are our sleeping arrangements?”

“I was going to be a gentleman and let you have the bed and I’ll have the couch since you’re so used to being pampered, sir.” C.C. said with only the slightest bit of sarcasm as he stood up from the desk. 

“Not that your long ass body would fit on the couch, but I’m touched” Ricky left the bathroom, clothes in hand. Not that he was wearing anything revealing, but the fact that he was wearing less clothes still made C.C. turn his head in attempts to hide his blush.

“I don’t mind. Besides, I’m not going to bed yet,” C.C. said as he took off his tie.

Ricky climbed into the center of the bed before turning to his company, “Do you ever sleep?”

“Oh! Right..” C.C.’s face lit up as he remembered something and rummaged through his bad. Ricky sat up, not asking what he was getting. C.C. walked around over to where Ricky was propped up on the bed. 

“I almost forgot, hold out your hand”

Ricky almost blushed. Almost. He did so and C.C. slapped on a pair of handcuffs, one side to Ricky’s wrist and the other to the bedframe. 

“What the fuck?” Ricky yelped as he thrashed his hand around completely befuddled. 

“I don’t trust you enough for you to not to run away or kill me in my sleep”

“What the fuck, Tinsley!” 

Did he really not expect this? All of his and C.C.’s last encounters always ended up with both of them having some sort of injury, hell, Ricky’s had his nose broken twice, why was he shocked that C.C. didn’t trust him.

“Hey, behave baby and you won’t have to wear them tomorrow night,” C.C. said with a wide smile as he walked back to his desk, the farthest point away from his company. 

“Fuck you,” was the only thing Ricky could mutter through his teeth. His face was hot, he was pissed. He hated C.C., he hated him, he hated this whole plan, he hated his pet names. And yet, he still tagged along with him on this trip. 

“Go to sleep, I’m trying to work” C.C. chirped from his desk. 

“You just handcuffed me to a bed, Tinsley, and not in the fun way, I’m pissed off!”

“That’s a shame, now go to sleep.”

Ricky’s whole body was hot; he couldn’t just talk to him like this, who does he think he is!

C.C. stayed at that desk looking over his papers. Ricky was giving him his piece of mind for the next hour but C.C. just tuned him out. He really needed to catch this guy, lives were on the line and so was his job. Sure, he was able to bring a few elusive criminals in, but he’s still getting his ass chewed by McClintock for not bringing in Ricky Goldsworth. There were times he did lie, right to the chief’s face, saying he didn’t know where Ricky was. He and Ricky had been on a constant chase for almost three years, so there were many times he could’ve easily put him behind bars, but he never did. Maybe he had just become accustomed to the repetition. Ricky would leave clues, C.C. would find him, Ricky’s numerous comments and quips that would leave him red in the face, they’d fight, they’d both get away, a few times they'd do other things, and it’d seem to start up again the next week. He was able to admit to himself that he admired Ricky, not that he justified the numerous crimes he’s committed, but there was something left to his persona that he could respect. Maybe some part of C.C. did trust Ricky, and maybe some part of him even liked Ricky. Both were scary thoughts C.C. just pushed to the back of his mind, he didn’t have time to think about that right now. 

Ricky, on the other hand, was still furious C.C. handcuffed him to a bedframe. Ok, maybe he did think about ways to leave the detective behind while on the train but he had given those ideas up. Upon realizing how much finding this Dr. Fear guy meant to C.C., he felt like maybe it was the least he could do, considering how many times he’s tried to, you know, kill him in the past. If C.C. lost his job, who would he taunt? The other detectives or policemen that have tried to catch him in the past were never as fun to tease as C.C. Tinsley. It was funny to Ricky, seeing how hard C.C. would try and track down his whereabouts. Every now and again, he would even leave more obvious clues for the detective, just so that he could be one more step closer to crossing his path. As much fun as it was to tease and taunt through miscellaneous clues and messages, it was much more entertaining to do it in person. Ricky loved seeing how much, or little, it would take to make C.C. blush. He was always quick to make small remarks about how easy it was to make the detective get flustered, which usually ended with the other man getting more red or more enraged. Either way, it was fun to Ricky. It was thrilling, if anything. His heart rate always seemed to increase when a certain detective was around, but Ricky always tried to ride it off as the thrill of the chase. If C.C. lost his job, what would be the fun in being a notorious criminal? C.C. was practically the only thing he thought about all the time, he'd miss him.

\---

C.C. didn’t remember when Ricky fell asleep; he just remembered the next time he looked back at him he was out cold. He even looked pissed off in his sleep. He didn’t remember falling asleep himself. He woke up with a splintering headache from sleeping at a hard desk, which wasn’t a new thing to him, and saw that the clock on the wall only read 6:30. 

“Ricky,” he said in a groggy voice, “wake up.”

A small sound of protest and the sound of Ricky turning over was heard from the other side of the room.

C.C. stretched out his arms above his head before walking over to his bags, retrieving the handcuffs key. Another aggravated sound from Ricky as he walked over to the bed. He was awake now and C.C. couldn’t tell if he was pissed or if that’s just how his morning face looked. His bed head was almost adorable.

“Wake up, princess,” he said as he unlocked the handcuffs. He was then greeted with a hard slap to the face from Ricky’s other face.

“You had it coming, asshole” Ricky shook his hand from the stinging sensation, “and enough with the pet names.”

C.C. rubbed his cheek wide-eyed. “Jesus fuck,” he shook his head fast before letting out a small chuckle, “Well now I’m awake.”

“You really don’t trust me, huh?” the other man said as he rubbed his wrist. 

“Not in the slightest” C.C. said getting up from the bed still rubbing his cheek, “And here I thought you’d like the cuffs”

“Not in the way you were thinking” Ricky hopped off the bed.

C.C. grabbed a clean shirt from his bag. “Mhm, get dressed, we have work to do”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe I'm just self-projecting when I say C.C. stays up too late doing his work lol.
> 
> Hope you're enjoying!! C.C. and Ricky are going to finally get some clues in the next chapter..


	4. Another Day, Another Body

“Are you really going out like that? That’s practically the same thing you wore yesterday,” Ricky asked as he tucked in his shirt. 

“Uhh yeah I am. I’m here on business,” C.C. said as he rolled up his sleeves, “besides, I’d rather maintain a low profile especially with you around.” 

“Clearly” Ricky said as he watched C.C. fumble with his tie. “Jesus, how have you lived this long, Tinsley, you can’t even dress yourself!”

Ricky crossed the room with a huff and grabbed the tie from C.C.’s hands before giving him a ‘fine I’ll do it’ look. C.C. just stood there, hands awkwardly at his sides, watching Ricky. Not even watching him tie his tie, just watching him. He caught himself staring and made a glance away that would’ve been very obvious if Ricky was paying attention.

“You’re like a goddamn child, C.C.,” Ricky muttered under his breath as he tightened his tie. He looked at him with a raised brow, “And fix your hair.”

“Thanks…” was all C.C. could get out before Ricky was already on the other side of the room putting on his coat, which honestly looked like it cost more than C.C. made in a month. “Wait, what’s wrong with my hair?”

\---

Just as the two had left their room, a woman came out from the room right across the hall from theirs. She was short, but everyone was shorter compared to C.C., and she had dark curly hair. 

“Was everything alright last night? I heard some yelling…” the woman said in a small voice.

C.C. just gave a friendly smile and replied, “Oh, yes ma’am just a bit of a… friendly dispute was all.” He wasn’t looking at him but C.C. felt that Ricky was staring daggers in his direction. 

“Oh, alright,” the woman returned a friendly smile before the two men continued down the hall. Neither of them spoke till they knew she was back in her room.

“She seemed nice,” C.C. beamed.

“Everyone acts nicer around you,” Ricky muttered, “it’s your face, you always walk around like you’re some dumb lost puppy.”

C.C. cocked a brow in Ricky’s direction along with a smug grin, “Well, you always look like you’re out for blood whenever I talk to someone else.”

“I do not!” Ricky said, almost raising his voice. His face grew hot, why did he always get so pissed whenever C.C. started teasing him.

\---

When the two made it outside, it was no longer raining. The skies overhead still remained cloudy and dark, but at least they didn’t have to brace the elements this time. The pair just started walking down the street, Ricky wasn’t sure where their first stop was but he trotted along behind anyways. Wherever they were headed first, C.C. seemed like he knew where to go. They walked side by side down the city sidewalk for about ten minutes before either of them said anything.

“Ok, hold on, hold on,” Ricky stopped them both; he had to seemingly drag C.C. to a halt. 

“What, what’s the hold up?” C.C. shook Ricky’s hand off his coat sleeve. 

Ricky pointed at the diner they just passed. “You haven’t eaten since yesterday.”

“Mm. I have a schedule I’d like to keep up with,” C.C. muttered.

“Do you even know where we’re going first?” The pause C.C. gave was answer enough for Ricky. “At least get some coffee or something, you look terrible,” he tugged at C.C.’s sleeve again.

“Eh, it’s the lighting,” C.C. smiled faintly before giving in and following behind Ricky into the diner.

The diner was fairly quiet, not many people for it to be the breakfast rush, C.C. thought. The two sat at the bar and waited for their waitress. As Ricky scanned over the menu, C.C. scanned the diner. There was no one that was seemingly out of place, no one that looked shady, but no one that looked like they’d have answers to any of C.C. questions. An old couple eating oatmeal painfully slow, an average man that looked like he was just about to head to the office, two girls that looked at him and then turned to each other to giggle bashfully, yeah, nothing out of the ordinary. He suddenly snapped out of his daze as he felt Ricky elbow his side. When he whipped his head around, a waitress was waiting to take his order. She had a kind but faint smile on her rosy cheeks as she waited for C.C.

“He- I- Just coffee for me, black,” C.C. managed to say. 

“Wow, you’re really going all out, hm,” Ricky said.

“I don’t- we don’t have time for leisure, we have work to do.” C.C. replied as he started bouncing his leg up and down in anticipation. 

“It’s our first day here, don’t stress. What’s the likelihood of this bastard killing again while we’re here?”

“Oh, you fellas haven’t heard?” A voice joined in. It was the waitress, Ruth, as C.C. was now paying attention to her name badge, bringing both the men their coffee. “I take it you haven’t yet read the paper this morning.”

“No, we just got in town last night,” C.C. stated. 

“Ah, tourists,” Ruth said as Ricky and C.C. gave each other a side-eye glance. “Well, here, read for yourself.” 

She grabbed the newspaper from behind her on the counter and handed it over to the taller one. C.C. glanced over the first page and saw the headline, ‘New Body Found, Victim and Killer Still Unknown’. He skimmed through the article, the corner of 5th and Kingswood, young man around 25 to 30 years old, body mutilated, still no head. This was clearly this Dr. Fear’s guy’s work, the murder rates weren’t high in this town. 

“Shit,” is the only audible thing you could’ve caught C.C. saying under his breath. He handed the paper to Ricky, who was seemingly waiting for his turn. 

“It’s horrendous, absolutely barbaric,” Ruth said as she watched Ricky read the article over. She started twirling one of her blond curls nervously, “It's all we wait to read about now, is who was next. I don’t even want to go off my front porch at night, there’s no telling who’s out there. You two sure did pick a great time to come over.”

“Well, it’s sorta why we’re here, actually,” C.C. gave a faint smile. 

Ruth returned a confused look. “Oh, I see how that could be taken as weird, I’m a detective,” C.C. said with a small laugh. 

Ruth gasped and leaned on the counter on her elbows, “A detective! Wow, are you here to catch this perp?” She had an enthusiastic and intrigued look in her hazel eyes. You couldn’t say the same for Ricky, who was watching this from behind his coffee mug.

“We’re actually from Chicago, but yes, we’re hoping to help figure out who’s the man behind the mystery here,” C.C. smiled. He knew Ricky was rolling his eyes now if he wasn’t already. 

“Well, you gotta name Mr. Big Shot Detective?” the waitress smiled. 

“Tinsley, and this is my pa- yeah partner, Goldsworth,” C.C. said as he put a hand on Ricky’s shoulder, who surprising tensed up at this. 

Ruth turned to Ricky with the same wide eyes, “You’re a detective, too?”

“Yes ma’am...” Ricky strained a smile, “My first trip in the field.”

“Well, good luck fellas! I hope you can find this bimbo. Coffee’s on me,” she gave them one more smile before taking their mugs.

“Thanks, Miss Ruth. You mind directing us in the direction of the police station?” C.C. asked.

“About seven blocks down on the other side of the street, you can’t miss it.”

\---

“Well now I know where we’re going,” C.C. grinned as he held the door for Ricky. 

“Mm, is that so Mr. Big Shot Detective?” Ricky gave a coy smile.

C.C. blushed a bit. “Oh, c’mon, that’s all just talk,” he said with a nervous laugh.

“’The man behind the mystery’? You’ve done better,” Ricky laughed. 

“Hey, I’ve done worse, too,” C.C. smiled as Ricky laughed again. It was his normal, genuine laugh, but why did it give C.C. such a weird feeling in his stomach when he heard it?

They made their way down the city blocks towards the police station. C.C. was glancing around, as if making mental note of the different buildings and streets. Ricky just focused on keeping up with C.C.’s long legs. C.C. noticed the lack of people out, this was a big city and it was now almost noon, where was everyone? The two had passed about three people during their entire morning out; certainly this wasn’t the only foot traffic, right? C.C. looked behind at his company, where they ended up locking eyes. 

“What?” Ricky said stopping in his tracks.

“Nothing,” C.C. replied as he stopped too and awkwardly looked away. They were only a block away from the station now. C.C. glanced at the street names.

“Uhh, hey, Ricky? What were those two street names where that body was found this morning?” C.C. said as he patted Ricky’s shoulder for his attention. 

“It was on the corner of 5th and Kingswood, Detec- oh shit.” Ricky looked up and read the street signs. 5th and Kingswood.

“That’s this street corner,” C.C. turned back to the other man.

“Yeah, I put that together.”

“Well, look! We’re at the scene of a crime but you can’t even tell! There’s no tape, there’s no chalk, there’s not even blood!” C.C. gestured at the sidewalk they were standing on. He huffed and if it were in any other circumstance, Ricky would’ve thought that as funny. But it was odd, either the police were lazy or very efficient, or something else was going on in Aurora.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh shit woah! another body the day they got there haha weird right?
> 
> hope y'all are enjoying it!! let me know what y'all think!!


	5. Our City, Our Specialty

“It doesn’t make sense!” C.C. exclaimed as the two marched across the street. “How the fuck does that happen? Was the body even there? Did the newspaper print the wrong street corner? What the hell!”

“Jesus, take a breather, let’s just get to the station,” Ricky said as he followed along side the taller and more stressed man. 

“Mm, that’s a first for you,” C.C. remarked. Maybe it’s a coping skill to make bad remarks when I’m under stress, but then again I make them all the time, he thought.

One after the other, they entered the building. It was quiet inside, quieter than the café. The two officers at the front desk seemed lackadaisical, as if there wasn’t a dead body across the street from them a few hours prior. 

“Who’s the lead detective around here?” C.C. spoke up after a moment’s silence considering the officers didn’t even raise an eyebrow. 

In an instant, one of the phones rang, which one of the officer’s did pick up. He took down a message before finally standing up and walking into one of the offices. Clearly he was going to be of no help. C.C.’s focus then shifted to the other officer who was reading the paper. 

“I asked who the lead detective is around here,” C.C. said sternly. Ricky could tell from how he said it he was getting pissed.

The other officer looked up from his paper, “What’s it to you?”

Ricky, who was standing just two feet from C.C., could practically feel the man’s body tense up. 

C.C. inhaled sharply, “I- ”

“If you want to file a report, take a form. If you want to file a complaint, take the other form,” the officer said.

Oh, I’ll file a complaint, C.C. thought. 

“What’s the hold up?” Ricky was the one to speak up this time. C.C. flinched a bit at his voice; he almost forgot he was there. 

“It’s a normal Thursday afternoon, you want us to be hustlin’ and bustlin’ in here?”

“Normal? Someone was murdered, right across the street, and you’re acting like this is a normal-” C.C. started. He stopped when another man walked into the main lobby from down the hall. 

“What’s the problem?” the man spoke.

“We’re just looking for the detective,” Ricky said as he took a step closer to C.C.

“That’d be me,” the man was intimidating enough, tall, sharp dressed, probably had a good decade on C.C., slicked back black curls, dark eyes and stubble on his face. He took a long draw of his cigarette before saying, “Who’s asking?” Pretty intimidating in comparison to C.C.

“Detective Tinsley from Chicago, I was sent in to investigate your recent string of murders,” C.C. said as calmly as he could. The man stared both of them down before turning on a heel and motioning them to follow him. 

The man lead the pair towards his office at the end of the hall, “I wasn’t made aware of this, Tinsley. Who’s in charge over there now? It was Carter when I was working up there.” 

“McClintock, now please, about the murders Detective…” C.C. waited to be properly introduced.

“Cooper. And why did you feel like you needed to come over and do my job for me?” the man stopped. 

“I’m not, but it seems you fellas have plenty of other things to being worrying about than a serial killer on your streets,” C.C. snapped. 

“We’re on top of it.”

C.C. took in a sharp breath, “Can I at least ask you a few questions?”

Detective Cooper took another deep inhale of his cigarette, “Fine, be my guest.”

\---

The three men stepped inside Cooper’s office; the desk hardly cluttered, the opposite of C.C.’s back home. Cooper took a seat at his desk while C.C. and Ricky took theirs. 

“What’ve you got, kid?” Cooper asked with a cloud of smoke. 

C.C. ignored the ‘kid’ remark. “About today’s murder, the one practically at your doorstep? Tell me about it.”

Cooper shifted in his chair. “Another nobody victim, we’re guessing, just like all the others. Same thing as I’m guessing you’ve heard, drugged before the ordeal, mutilated during, and headless after. Whoever this guy is is getting ballsy with this game, most the other bodies have just been found in back alleyways.”

C.C. had his small notepad out but didn’t need to rewrite these words he’d already heard before. “Still no clue to who this Dr. Fear guy is?”

“Dr. Fear,” Cooper chuckled, “Hell if we know if that’s even the guy’s name! That’s mainly for the papers; folks get a kick out of it. But no, besides the actual body, the scenes’ are spotless, no hint or clue to who this fucker is.” He tapped his cigarette against the silver ashtray on his desk. 

“So this most recent victim, do you know where he was last seen?”

“I know where you’re going with this and yes, the victim was last seen at Miller’s Funeral Home, but we’ve already searched the place! We’ve questioned the owner, Mr. Miller, twice now and he gives good alibis, we just don’t see him fitting our profile. Besides, he owns the morgue as well, and we’d know if something was going behind the scenes,” Cooper said. 

C.C. wrote down the name on his notepad. “What’s your next plan of action?”

“We’ve had the city set a curfew in the surrounding area. Besides that, we just wait till he strikes again,” Cooper shrugged. 

“But he already did!” Ricky spoke up, “You just going to wait till he comes after you next till you start doing something?” C.C. noticed Ricky was clenching the armrests of his chair. 

Cooper’s gaze shifted over to Ricky. He took another puff of his cigarette, “And you are?”

Ricky shot him a hard stare, “I’m with him, that’s all you need to know.”

“I’m sure. But where do you fit in all of this?”

“I’m his… partner,” Ricky hesitated to say for the second time that day. “First time in the field.”

“Mm, a rookie. Well, we’re waiting for this fucker to slip up before you do.”

C.C. flinched at the words, he was well acquainted with Ricky’s temperament and he knew he was not going to take that lightly. 

“All I’m getting at, detective, is you should be out there right now doing something instead of sitting on your asses waiting for the next anonymous tip, sir,” Ricky said smoothly, he knew how to talk to people he didn’t like and this guy quickly made that list. 

There was a strenuous silence as Ricky stared Cooper down with such as glare you’d think he was burning a hole in his head. C.C. ended up fiddling with his notepad a bit, hoping he or Ricky was going to do anything foolish here. Jesus Christ, I didn’t even check if he’s armed before leaving the hotel, knowing him he has a knife somewhere on him, C.C. thought.

“You mentioned earlier that you worked over in Chicago?” C.C. broke the silence. 

Cooper cleared his throat before taking his eyes off Ricky, “Yes, for about ten years, though I was probably long gone before you came around. Last big case of mine is what drove me outta that town.”

“What case was that?” C.C. looked at him in confusion and in interest. He doesn’t remember any other big cases before Ricky Goldsworth.

“The Goldsworth family case. It was open and shut case, we could just never catch the kid.”

C.C.’s heart skipped a beat and he could tell Ricky’s probably did too. C.C. knew most everything about Ricky when he was first starting out, was there something he missed? He shot a side-eye stare at Ricky, who tensed up in fear now. He looked at Ricky’s grip on the armrests tighten. He contemplated touching Ricky’s shoulder to get him to loosen up but he didn’t want to risk losing a hand.

Who the fuck is this guy? Does he recognize me? That was years ago, that’s all behind me now. God, why did this have to be brought up now, Ricky thought. He hadn’t experienced fear in a long time; he certainly didn’t miss it. 

Cooper didn’t seem to recognize him, “Yeah, after that wild goose chase, I just packed my bags and took my business elsewhere, which landed me in this do-nothing city.”

“Until the string of murders in your sector,” C.C. chirped.

“Of course,” Cooper furrowed his brow. 

“Anything… else you can tell us? About the murders, I mean” Ricky asked in a more timid voice than usual. 

“At this point, you know as much as we do,” Cooper put his cigarette out in his ashtray before standing up. 

C.C. said rising from his seat, “Could I see the report on this morning’s killing?”

“Today’s isn’t going to be ready till late this afternoon but you’re welcome to take a look at Monday’s, Miller’s still got to figure out how to prep it for burial,” Cooper laughed lightly. 

Miller takes care of the bodies, interesting, he thought. Well, maybe not that interesting, he could be the only morgue in town. 

As Cooper grabbed the file, C.C. turned to look at his shorter companion, who was now standing at his side. He was still staring that same icy stare at Cooper, but when he turned to C.C., his gaze softened. Interesting, C.C. thought. 

Cooper handed the report over to the lanky detective and proceeded to shoo both men out of his office. 

“But about Fear,” Cooper said, “Leave him to us, it’s our town, our specialty. We’ll get it taken care of. It’s only a matter of time till this fucker slips up, they all do eventually.” He clapped C.C. on the shoulder. 

“And if anything else we need to know comes up,” he grinned, “Just give us a call.”

\---

“’Our town, our specialty, says the guy who’s got the country’s best serial killer in his midst,” C.C. laughed lightly as he walked out the front door. Ricky wasn’t far behind him, tense still and remained tense even when C.C. put an arm around his shoulder. The look Ricky gave C.C. is what threw him off the most, he looked so stressed. Stressed was a weird look on him, he didn’t wear it well.

C.C. gave Ricky’s shoulder a light squeeze. “I’m not gonna ask right now, but knowing me I probably will later, fair warning,” he said with a small smile. 

Ricky seemed to relax the slightest bit at this, maybe it’s just C.C.’s ‘charming’ demeanor. He sure wasn’t in the mood to talk about his past to him right now, or maybe ever, but that dumb smile of his made him feel better. 

“Something’s still not adding up here, I don’t trust this guy…”

“How about me?” Ricky gave a weak smile. 

“Mm, I’m starting to, but don’t get your hopes up, baby,” C.C. grinned.

“Don’t call me baby,” Ricky laughed a bit. As much as it flustered him, it did lighten his spirits a bit. “What next, big guy?”

“I have a few questions for Mr. Miller.” And with that, the two men started walking back the way they came.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this one isn't as long and sorry in advance if there's mistakes here!!  
> whaaaat mysterious past whom??  
> and no i didn't name the detective cooper bc i just finished twin peaks i had this character a while  
> feel free to let me know what you think!!!


	6. Cuts and Bruises

C.C. opened the file Cooper had given him as the two walked down the city street. It was a woman, said to have been between the ages of 20 and 25. Far too young to die, definitely too young to be killed by a serial creep. Ricky had to tell C.C. to “watch those long legs” of his as he nearly walked into three different lampposts. C.C. continued reading anyway. The autopsy report was gnarly to say the least. Various cuts scattered across her torso and bruises placed along her arms. There weren’t any fatal wounds on her, but asphyxiation or blunt force trauma to the head could’ve done it. There would’ve been more to work with if there was a fucking head attached. If this guy had an evil lair, C.C. sure as hell didn’t want to see it. 

What are we going to find at this place?

That Cooper is hiding something, I’m sure, but what?

Where and who the hell is Dr. Fear?

Questions ran through C.C.’s head, like they always did. His thoughts were loud, he mentally paced back and forth in his own consciousness, just thinking. This city was too quiet for C.C.’s tastes. Definitely a change from Chicago, where you can’t go thirty seconds without hearing someone yell or swear. Maybe everyone was hiding away, bunkering down, he guessed a serial killer on the loose would do that to you. But, on the other hand, he was walking next to one. 

He turned to his company; Ricky was still pretty quiet after the whole talk with Cooper. C.C. was going to ask about that, just another mystery about Mr. Goldsworth would have the pleasure figuring out. Ricky glanced at him but C.C. looked back ahead before they could lock eyes. C.C. wasn’t an easily distractible man, but his shorter counterpart always caught him getting lost in other thoughts. 

\---

The closer the pair got to Miller’s Funeral Home, the greater the feeling of dread knotted in C.C.’s stomach. He wanted to avoid them as much as possible in all honesty, but in his line of work that just wasn’t something he could get out of. 

“What’s on your mind, Tins?” Ricky’s voice snapped him out of his anxious daze. 

“Huh?” C.C. spurted out with a strained, stressed look on his face. 

“Your face is doing that thing.”

“What thing?”

“You know, when you’re thinking too hard and you just go-“ Ricky mimicked his expression, making a face similar to the one a child makes when they’re presented vegetables on their plate. 

C.C. laughed at this, getting a different weird feeling in his stomach, “Oh, really, that’s the face I make?”

“I’m well accustomed to it,” Ricky said with a small smile. Ricky felt the same warm fuzzy feeling he always did when he made C.C. laugh, it was good… but he didn’t like to think about it. 

They came to a halt in front of the door to the funeral home. The building gave off a morbid energy, aside from the fact it was a morgue. C.C. turned his head to see the Belvedere Hotel right across the street, a sort of safe space just out of reach. The very sidewalk they were standing on there gave C.C. a bad feeling, probably because that’s where six different people were seen for the last time. 

“What’s wrong now?” Ricky said in a slightly annoyed tone. 

“C’mon, you know I don’t like dealing with this sorta stuff,” C.C. said still facing the hotel. 

“Ugh! You’re doing it again!”

C.C. turned to his company with the same nervous expression as earlier, “What?”

“That dumb face of yours!” Ricky tried to appear frustrated.

“You’ve never seemed to have a problem with my face before” C.C. said. 

Ricky turned his gaze towards the door as he felt his face grow hot.  
“Shut up,” he said under his breath. He opened the door and stepped inside first, the taller one following suit. 

\---

C.C. scanned the room, as he did in every new place. The parlor was dim, the lights on the walls giving off a faint glow. The room was wide, chair and sofas on either wall usually as a place for mourners to sit. There were two desks, one tucked in each corner of the room. The one of the left was clean, tidy, organized, nothing like C.C.’s. The one on the left was clearly used daily with different papers littered across it. C.C. caught an eye of some framed newspaper articles near the desk and decided to take a closer look. 

“Helloooo? Mr. Millerrrrr?” Ricky dragged out the man’s name. He turned to C.C. and said, “I swear everyone’s on break today.”

“Mhm,” C.C. made a noise to let Ricky know he heard him, not that he really listened. He stood with his hands behind his back, still holding on to Cooper’s file. He was studying the framed newspaper clippings. They were all obituaries, not odd for this place of business, but odd to have them framed and displayed. Weird, C.C. thought.

“Whatcha see, detective,” Ricky said in a more hushed voice. He stood next to him, trying to look where the other man was looking. 

“Just obituaries and such, a lot these people were still pretty young,” C.C. replied with the volume voice, scratching his chin. “Look, here,” C.C. pointed at the third one he’d been eyeing, “this isn’t from the same newspaper.”

“Maybe they had lived in the next town over or were just well-known, Tins. I know if anything were to happen to you, your name would be plastered over every newspaper in the state,” Ricky chirped. 

“A charming thought,” the detective replied dryly. “But look, this isn’t even from Illinois,” he pointed at the frame. The title was the Ohio Weekly. He looked at the one next to it, the Lake Michigan Tribune. Another the Pennsylvania Chronicle. 

“What’s the point you’re struggling so hard to find,” Ricky said with a teasing smile.

“Well doesn’t it strike you as a bit… odd that someone has obituaries of seemingly random people from different cities, different states, just plagued up above their desk?” C.C. asked, turning to his companion. 

“Are you suggesting someone’s keeping track of something?”

“Yes. Seems like something you psychos do,” C.C. gave a coy smile.

Ricky’s face flushed. “I only had the ONE article about you and you know it!” Ricky said trying not to raise his voice.

“Yeah, the one with my face on it.” Watching Ricky get worked up was really entertaining for C.C. to watch, it was almost cute.

“You were a brand new detective in town, you were a threat to me.”

“Oh, I bet you say that about all the detectives.”

“You have no room to talk, Tinsley, I’ve seen your office!”

“It’s my job to keep track of you, it’s evidence,” C.C. strained for emphasis. 

“Then why do you keep all the letters signed “Love, R.G.” in your drawer, hm?” Ricky leaned in closer to the taller man. 

C.C. blushed at this. “Well, why’d you send them?”

Ricky made a small noise like an aggravated cat, his face scrunched up in frustration. Our snarky banter is only fun when I’M the one doing it, Ricky thought. Checkmate, Tinsley, you won this round. 

Ricky opened his mouth to try and retaliate when a voice came from behind them.

“Can I help you, gentlemen?”

The pair whipped around simultaneously, both still a bit flushed in the face. 

“Er, I- You’re Mr. Miller, I presume?” asked C.C., putting Cooper’s file in his jacket. 

“Yes, that’s me. What can I help you boys with?” He was old, much older than C.C. His thin white hair was balding on his head and his lab coat was crisp and clean. The thin frames of his glasses sat on his pointy nose. Not was C.C. had in mind for a potential serial killer suspect, this man looked like he was a foot in the grave himself. 

“Detective Tinsley from Chicago, I have a few questions for you.”

“I may have a few answers.”

“I know Detective Cooper has already questioned you about the recent murders and-“

“Detective Cooper? He’s hardly asked me a thing!”

“Huh?” C.C. and Ricky both said dumbfounded. 

“The only times he’s been by here is to get my autopsy reports. If he asks questions, it’s questions about that. I could’ve sworn I would’ve been their prime target, considering the circumstances,” the man fiddled with his hands nervously. 

C.C. turned to Ricky. They exchanged the same confused look and then looked back over at Mr. Miller. 

“Could you-“ C.C. started. 

“Start from the beginning,” Ricky finished. 

Miller gestured to one of the sofas, “Please, take a seat.”

The two sat on the sofa as Miller sat in the chair across from them. C.C. read his body language. He was stiff and tense, not just from age. He was on edge about something; maybe it was just because two strangers from Chicago came in to ask about a slue of murders in his town. C.C. thought about it and his own body language probably showed he was just as tense. He looked out of the corner of his eye at Ricky, who was sitting fairly close to him; his eyes glued on the man across form them. 

“So this obviously isn’t a proper interrogation, I just want a better understanding of what’s going on in this town of yours, Mr. Miller,” C.C. said crossing his legs. 

“Please, David is fine. And yes, I understand.”

“Tell us about the first murder,” Ricky said as he pulled his cigarette tin from his jacket. 

“The first one was probably the worst one, that was around a month ago. I was down in the morgue late that night so I didn’t see- I couldn’t have seen anyone walking in front of my building. Same as all those nights, I was never up front in the parlor to see any strange activities.”

“How bad was the first murder?” Ricky asked as he lit up his cigarette. C.C. wondered if he asked that in a detective mindset or if he was wondering if he had competition. 

“One of the worst I’ve seen in my line of work, the poor man was practically butchered. And there was no way for me to help identify him, the killer cut off his head efficiently, and he- his hands were cut off too, so no fingerprints. Cuts and bruises galore, of course. Drugs were found in the body, heroin and novociane, just like in the others. We’ve never had a killing like that happen here.”

“Until the next one,” Ricky leaned back a bit. 

“…Yes. It almost became routine, after that.”

“How much foot traffic do you get in this place?” the detective asked. 

“Not many people in and out of this place aside from family funerals. And this isn’t exactly a place to loiter, Detective.”

“When was the first time Detective Cooper showed up?” C.C. cleared his throat.

“Well, he came to me after the first murder. He wanted me to do an autopsy on the body, which was normal. But he never questioned my employees or I about any of our whereabouts at the times of the murders or if we saw anything suspicious. He only comes by to examine the bodies and get the reports.”

C.C. leaned forward, “And that didn’t strike you as odd? I’m not saying you should be a suspect but-“

“Yes, albeit it’s odd. But Cooper’s been the head detective around here for years and he always gets the job done. He trusts me, I’ve helped him in his investigations before. He seems to be working on something; he’s determined to solve all of this.” Miller said in confidence. 

Determined being an understatement, C.C. thought. 

“You said your employees, where are they?” Ricky blew a cloud of smoke. 

“I only ever need to call them in when we have to prep a body, so John’s down in the morgue right now. John Reynolds.”

“Anyone else?” C.C. said as he scribbled down the name in his notepad. Ricky eyed him doing so, if it wasn’t a for a serious situation, Ricky would’ve thought it was cute. 

“Harold Hale, he sometimes works at the hospital and he’s another one that helps me with the bodies. And Rose Floyd, the secretary.”

C.C. sloppily wrote the names down, as his handwriting does when he was in a rush. He’ll know what it meant later. 

“Hale not come in today?” Ricky asked from his relaxed position on the couch. 

“I only call him in when I need him.”

“Where’s Floyd today, she sure wasn’t at the front desk to great us,” Ricky said putting out his cigarette in the ashtray next to him. 

“She had family affairs to attend to, I’m afraid.”

“That’s a shame,” Ricky said under his breath. 

“Could we take a look at this morning’s body, David?” C.C. asked stuffing his notepad in his jacket. 

“Of course, if you’ll just follow me.”

\---

The two men followed behind the slow David Miller down to the morgue, the hallway was just as dim as the parlor. Something wrong is taking place in this town and it’s not just the serial killings. Why wasn’t Cooper doing his fucking job? C.C. thought, certainly there’s nothing else on his plate and this should’ve been the first place to start. 

“I don’t think he’s our guy,” Ricky whispered to C.C.

“I’m not ruling him out completely, shit’s not adding up. Besides, keep your voice down,” C.C. whispered back.

“Relax, big guy, he can hardly hear us to begin with,” Ricky said as the corners of his mouth quirked up in a small smile. 

“Shush, Ricky.”

The morgue itself was in the basement of the building. C.C. felt his uneasy feeling come back when he saw the stainless steel doors of the containers and the drains in the floor. The body was on the table, its outline seen under the white sheet draped over it. He wanted to be anywhere else than right here, about to look at a mutilated body. C.C. didn’t want to appear uneasy, to David or Ricky, and C.C. knew Ricky never had a problem with this sort of thing. Then C.C. noticed the other man in the basement with them, presumably John Reynolds.

“John, this is Detective Tinsley and… I’m sorry, son, I don’t think I caught your name,” Miller turned to Ricky. 

“Detective Morgan, I’m his partner,” Ricky didn’t even bat an eye. C.C. knew he needed to remember his companion’s new alias so he doesn’t slip up and cause more trouble than their worth. 

“Yes, of course.”

“Nice to meet you, are you from the station?” John asked. He couldn’t have been too much older than C.C. and only a few inches shorter. Not the most handsome man he’s seen, but his slicked back blond hair and hazel eyes were almost friendly. 

“Chicago.”

“Ah, Chicago, yes, my folks grew up there. Once my sister was born we-“

“Anyways, let’s look at the body,” Ricky cut him off. Ricky didn’t care if it seemed rude, he sure as hell wasn’t going to listen to this man’s life story. 

“Of course…” John said putting on a new pair of gloves. 

The men stood around the table as John pulled back the sheet. C.C. was the only one in the room that had any change in expression, that same nervous face he made. Until Ricky pointed it out, he hardly noticed how often he made it. Ricky seemed to notice the face and a quick smirk flashed on his face. 

The body wasn’t a pretty site, not murdered body was. Blue, bloated, veins discernable under the skin, C.C. never got used to it. Similar to the other murders, the man’s body had miscellaneous cuts and bruises scattered across its arms and torso, and the head was cut in a sickeningly precise cut. 

“Find anything different in this one than the others?” Ricky was the first one to say anything. For once, C.C. was glad he had Ricky along with him, he asked the questions C.C. needed. 

“This can’t be from a copycat killer, the pattern is too concise in this one. Novocaine was found in his system and all other apparent wounds match the other murders,” David said. 

“Have you finalized the report?” C.C. asked, not taking his eyes off of the body. 

“I just finished up,” John said, turning to grab the papers behind him, “I was just planning to take them over to Detective Cooper.”

“We can take them over to him,” Ricky said as he gave C.C. the smallest nudge. 

“Um- yes, that’s actually why we came over today, we’re helping him out on this case,” C.C. said looking at Ricky before turning to John. John handed him the file. 

“I hope we were of some help today, Detective,” John said to him.

“Yes, yes, thank you both,” C.C. told both David and John. “I’ll be sure to stop by if there’s anything else I need.”

\---

C.C. and Ricky walked back up the dim stairs and down the dim hallway. 

“There’s gotta be something in this report that’ll help me connect all this,” C.C. realized he had said out loud. 

“There’s got to be one lead we’re not seeing, you’ll figure it out,” Ricky said, oddly supportive. 

“Well, that’s the plan, at least,” C.C. gave a weak shrug. 

“Who knew you could be so serious when you’re actually focused on arresting someone.”

“Like I’ve never been serious working on your case?”

“Hardly so, you’re more flustered than anything, it’s adorable,” Ricky smirked.

C.C. gave him a side-eye glance, “Adorable’s hardly what I’m going for.”

“Then what are you going for, C.C.?”

“I-“

“Detective Tinsley,” a familiar voice was heard from the doorway. C.C. flinched, looking ahead seeing Cooper’s not very pleased face. Jesus, is everyone in this town silent on their feet, C.C. thought. 

“If it isn’t the man of the hour…” Ricky said. He hardly seemed threatened. C.C. gave his arm a pat as a ways to tell him to back down.

“What are you two doing here?” Cooper asked stepping closer to them.

“I just had a few questions for Mr. Miller, Detective,” C.C. said coolly. 

“I’m sure you did,” Cooper said. He kept his voice low, but he sounded pissed off. C.C. couldn’t tell if it was suspicious or just threatening. The other detective walked up to C.C., snatching the autopsy report out of his hand. 

“Why didn’t you question Miller first, Detective? Better yet, why did you lie to my face about it?” the lanky man asked sternly. 

“I didn’t want to jump to any false conclusions. Who are you to be interrogating me now, Tinsley?”

“He’s trying to do his job, unlike you, don’t get your panties in a twist,” Ricky snapped. 

There was a silence that fell over the three of them, C.C. could practically hear Cooper’s blood pressure rising. He felt if he even breathed wrong, one man would be at another’s throat.

Cooper took a sharp breath before looking at Ricky. “I told you two that I had things under control.” He whipped his head around to C.C. “I don’t want you two hot shots strolling in and taking over my investigation, messing up my evidence, and sticking your noses where they shouldn’t be, kapeesh?”

“Understood,” C.C. replied with a furrowed brow. He saw Ricky flash him a stern glare out the corner of his eye. 

“Glad to know you can follow orders, Tinsley, I wish you can say the same thing for your partner,” Cooper said before turning a heel and heading back the direction he came. 

Both men stood there fuming until he was well out of their sights. 

“What the fuck was that supposed to mean?” Ricky turned to C.C.

“You don’t take to authority well, baby.”

Ricky gazed turned sharp. “I am the authority, I’ve always been, I don’t like being told what to do.”   
“I beg to differ,” the lanky detective said with a coy smile.

Ricky was frustrated at himself for blushing. “Still not a honeymoon, C.C.?”

C.C. smiled, “Of course it isn’t. And do try to keep things professional, Ricky. I don’t want you getting arrested by any of the bimbos here. If anyone’s putting you behind bars it’s me.”

“Want me all to yourself, I get it,” a smug expression formed on the shorter man’s face. 

“One day, I will put you behind bars, believe me.” That was the biggest lie C.C. ever told himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> forgive me for any mistakes and honestly i hope this all makes sense!! it always sounds better in my head lol  
> sorry the update took so long, i'm planning on getting more writing done over this easter break


	7. Check Up

_C.C. could hardly hear over the sound of his shoes hitting the pavement and his heartbeat in his ears. He had been chasing this man for a few blocks now. The man in front of him halted for a split second before darting down an alleyway, a dead end. If he wasn’t planning on being cornered, he would’ve picked a different route, maybe he wanted to get caught, C.C. later thought. But in the moment, C.C. just wanted to stop running._

_A few yards ahead of him was the man C.C. was after. Both figures were silent aside from heavy breathing._

_C.C. straightened up. He was still breathing heavily and he tried to convince himself he wasn’t as scared as he actually was. He called out, “Ricardo Goldsworth!”_

_The other man flinched slightly as the first name left C.C.’s lips._

 

_“It’s Ricky, just letting you know,” the man said back._

_“Mind coming closer or do I have to chase you to the wall behind you?” C.C. said, his voice sounding a bit shaky on account that he was still out of breath and he was really fucking scared._

_He heard a huff and then the other man started walking his direction, not a shroud of fear on him._

_C.C. hadn’t gotten a good look at the man before but he was nothing short of stunning. His slicked back hair was dark and he had eyes to match. His rolled up sleeves still had visible blood on them._

_“Mm, you’re the new detective, aren’t you?” Ricky said in a low voice, his eyes tracing over C.C.’s body. “I’ve seen your face in the papers, you’re much more handsome in person. And taller, too.”_

_C.C. swallowed, “Detective C.C. Tinsley, I’m the new one assigned to your case, and you’re under arrest.” He didn’t realized how utterly amateur he sounded till the words fell out of his mouth._

_“Oh now there’s no need for that, is there?” Ricky said with an almost sweet smile as he stepped closer to C.C. The man clearly didn’t know what personal space meant._

_“You just ran from a crime scene, Mr. Goldsworth, from a crime you committed,” C.C. said taking the smallest step back as he watched Ricky’s every move._

_“Call me Ricky, Detective, it’s a lot more personal that way,” Ricky grinned, his eyes sparkled with what C.C. could only imagine were bad intentions._

_C.C. shook his head slightly, “I- I don’t want to be personal with you, I want to do my job.”_

_“I’m your job now.”_

_C.C. felt his face growing hot. “You’re not gonna make this easy, are you?”_

_“Now where’s the fun in that?” Ricky straightened up C.C.’s tie. “I can already tell I’m gonna enjoy watching you chase me around.”_

_C.C’s body stiffened as Ricky had a hold of the fabric currently around his neck, he knew what he was capable of doing. “Well, I’ve got you here, don’t I?”_

_“You’ve got me here, right where you want me, hm?” Ricky leaned in, his hand still had a grip on C.C.’s tie._

_C.C. just nodded dumbfounded, face flushed. C.C.’s heart was beating so loud he was afraid Ricky could hear it. Maybe he could._

_Ricky cocked his head slightly, studying C.C.’s face with a satisfied smirk, “You’re awfully cute when you’re flustered, Detective Tinsley.”_

_“Wha- Who’s flustered?” C.C. asked a dumb question._

_Ricky dropped his tie in an instant as he heard footsteps approaching in the distance. “You’re never going to catch me, Detective, I hope you know that.”_

_He walked around C.C. who only turned and stared at him dumbfounded._

_“This was fun, can’t wait to do it again sometime,” Ricky said with one last smile before bounding around the street corner._

_C.C. stood there for a moment, his face still pink. He tried to process what all just happened. All his years of training, all his research, and no one told him that Ricky Goldsworth was like that. Goldsworth was a menace, a devil, a loaded gun ready to go off, that’s all he’s ever known. That little show completely caught him off guard._

_C.C. muttered under his breath, “McClintock’s going to kill me for this.”_

\---

If C.C. went back four years and told himself that he would be using Ricky Goldsworth's help on a case, he would've never believed himself.

The pair headed towards the St. Mary’s Hospital on the other side of the block, Ricky close by his side, looking for a Mr. Harold Hale. ‘Hale worked for Miller and worked with bodies frequently, if he didn’t have a good alibi, maybe we finally have a suspect,’ Ricky had said before they started down that path. Just as their walks before, the two walked in an awkward silence before either of them spoke. As much as C.C. had been thinking about this case and as much as he wanted to keep thinking about this case, his mind continued to wander off to think about Ricky. Not anything necessary for the case, of course, but just, the man in general. Ricky made him feel things, think things, that he didn't really want to come to terms with. The whole trip thus far, C.C. couldn’t stop asking himself questions.

 

“Ricky?” C.C. said as he stopped at the street corner.

 

“Hm?” Ricky turned to his tall counterpart, waiting for him to speak.

 

“When we, um, “first met”,” C.C. made the quotations in the air, “why’d you go down a dead end alleyway when you knew I was right behind you?”

 

Ricky seemed to take a second to register what C.C. was even talking about and then his brow furrowed a bit, just trying to give off the impression he was agitated and not flustered. “Why are you talking about this now?”

 

“I’ve just been thinking about it is all,” the lanky detective clasped his hands behind his back, “I just want to know why. I mean, the only logical thing I could ever come up with is that you wanted to get caught.” He took a step closer to Ricky.

 

“Don’t put words in my mouth, Tinsley, that’s not why I-“

 

“Why you… what?”

 

“Why I stopped running…”

 

“Why did you stop?” C.C. raised a brow.

 

“Because I was tired.”

 

“Bullshit, that’s why I stopped,” C.C. let out a small laugh, “C’mon, why’d you stop.”

 

“Just wanted to see the new detective for myself is all.” Ricky said with a sigh.

 

C.C. rubbed his chin, exaggerating this implication of him thinking, and a smile widened across his face. He nodded slightly, “Okay.” And started walking down the next side street.

 

“What?” Ricky asked bewildered as he started off behind C.C., practically bounding to catch up to him, “You were the detective, I was the criminal, I had to see you eventually!”

 

C.C. was in no way trying to hide this grin on his face, “All I said was okay, that’s all I wanted to know.”

 

“Why now, C.C.? What else have you got going on in that big head of yours?” Ricky asked, bugged C.C. was acting like this. This was how he usually acted, not C.C., being on the other side of it wasn’t as fun.

 

“Hmm, I’m reluctant to tell, dear,” C.C. put his hands in the pockets of his coat as he continued walking. Ricky’s flushed cheeks only made him smile wider.

 

Ricky furrowed his brow in annoyance, “Don’t pull that shit with me, C.C., just tell me!”

 

C.C. looked at a car pass by before crossing the street. “It’ll be a conversation for another time, I’m afraid. We’re both terribly busy today.”

 

“You don’t play fair, do you?” Ricky huffed as he followed.

 

“I learned from the best.”

 

\---

St. Mary’s Hospital was a fairly old building; carved cold stone didn’t show much warmth or hospitality to passers by. There was an open lot behind it, mainly used as a makeshift park area where patients could get some fresh air, all of which was enclosed by a large iron fence. There were buildings on either side of hospital but the only signs that C.C. paid any mind to was the grocery store and pharmacy to the left of it. The detective glanced around the street and across it, trying to get a sense of where he was. Directly across the street was the back of Miller’s Funeral Home. An office building and some apartments were on either side, with only narrow alleyways in between.

 

C.C. walked in through the main entrance with a very annoyed Ricky following along side. The hospital, unlike the places they’ve seen so far, actually had people in it. There were nurses walking this way and that, like traffic. A few families seated on benches, the ones with small children on their laps in attempts to keep them calm and quiet. A few couples too, holding and squeezing each other’s hands for comfort. Must be nice, C.C. thought as he glanced to his short companion.

Ricky caught his stare. “Tins, if you’re wanting to start teasing me again, now’s not the time or place,” he said in a stern but quiet voice.

 

C.C. scoffed, “Of course I _want_ to but I try to stay professional. Let’s just ask this gal for some help.” He nudged his head in the direction of the front counter.

 

“Hi!” a small voice said from beside them. Ricky turned to see a small child smiling up at him, waving with a small little hand.

“Mm, hello.” Ricky said as if he was talking with a coworker not a child.

 

“Are you here for a checksup too?” The boy asked clutching a teddy bear, combining the words of ‘check up’, you know how kids are.

 

“No, I’m here on grown-up business. Now, why don’t you just run along,” Ricky tried shooing the child away from him in the nicest way possible.

 

“For shame, Ricky!” C.C. playfully scolded, “He just wanted to say hello, didn’t you?” He said as he crouched down to the child’s level, though he still was much taller even squatting down.

 

The little boy nodded as he held the stuffed bear to his chest.

 

“What’s your name? I like your bear,” C.C. said with a smile.

 

“Thomas, but I don’t like Thomas, so you can call me Tommy.”

 

“Ok, Tommy,” C.C. chuckled, “My name’s C.C.”

 

“Hi, C.C.” Tommy smiled and then looked up again at Ricky. “Is he mean?”

 

“Who, him? Noooo, he’s just mad I brought him here,” C.C. smiled as he heard Ricky scoff behind him.

 

The boy looked back up at Ricky, “Oh, it’s ok Mister, I don’t like the doctor either.”

 

C.C. laughed as a woman walked up to them in a hasty fashion.

 

“Tommy, I told you not to walk off!” she scolded as she grabbed his hand, “I’m sorry, he just likes to wander off sometimes.”

 

“No, it’s alright! It was very nice to meet you, Tommy,” C.C. waved goodbye to the boy as he was walked back to the bench where his mother had been sitting.

 

“Cute kid,” C.C. said to Ricky as he stood back up.

 

Ricky’s heart fluttered. He knew C.C. was always that goody-two-shoes guy, the kind that would lay his coat down over a puddle for you but seeing C.C. interact with kids was nothing short of precious to him. Precious… not a word he’d ever even said in his head before. He hadn’t thought this way about someone… ever. Mushy things, soft things never even crossed his mind before.

 

Ricky shook his head, trying to forget the whole thing, “Just a big dumb puppy is all you are, C.C.”

 

The lady perked her head up when she saw the two walk up to the counter. Strawberry blond hair neatly pulled out of her face and tucked under her nurse’s cap. Her uniform was starched white and crisp, just as everyone else’s.

 

“Are you hear for an emergency or appointment?” she asked.

 

C.C. tapped his fingers on the counter, “Um, neither, we’re just looking for someone who works here. Harold Hale.”

 

“Hale, Hale, I know he works here, but I don’t know where he is” the lady gave a small laugh.

 

“We just want to ask him a few questions. It’s kind of important,” Ricky said, arms folded once again in annoyance.

 

“You could ask Nurse Josephine she probably knows, she should be in the break room. If you go down this hall and make a right, it’s the second room on the left.” She pointed to the hall to the men’s left.

 

They both thanked her and made their way down the hall.

 

\---

 

“What was the fake name you used again? I don’t think I was paying attention.”

 

“Doesn’t surprise me, Tins. Morgan.” Ricky replied.

 

“Ah okay. You’d think they’d want to know who they’ve got running around a place like this,” C.C. lightly nudged his company.

 

“You’re telling me a lousy detective and a fugitive of the law don’t normally prance around a hospital?” Ricky joked.

 

C.C. put on a fake frown, “You are you calling lousy? Just when I started to trust you, you go and hurt my feelings.”

 

“Trust me?” Ricky was surprised, “Why, C.C. Tinsley, why the change of heart?”

 

“It’s not like I really have another option right now.”

 

“Uh huh.”

 

C.C. knocked on the door of the break room, the second room on the left. There was a nurse in the room, the suspected Nurse Josephine, and she gave a confused look as she stepped up to the door.

 

“Tinsley and Morgan, hello,” the detective introduced the two, “Are you Josephine?”

 

“Can I help you two?” the lady asked cautiously.

 

“The gal up front told us you may know where someone is.”

 

“Yes, I’m Josephine, and if you’re here as a visitor, she should’ve been able to tell you where-“

 

“We’re looking for someone that works here, Harold Hale,” Ricky interrupted.

 

“Oh, Hale! He usually works in the West Wing. Why are you boys looking for him?”

 

“To make a long story short, we’re detectives up from Chicago and we just have a few questions for him.” C.C. said.

 

Josephine asked with a worried look. “My god, detectives? He’s not in any trouble is he?”

 

“No, no, no trouble,” C.C. reassured.

 

“Not yet at least,” Ricky muttered, earning an elbow in the shoulder from C.C.

 

“Well, I’d be glad to lead you boys that way, if you’d like. Don’t want you getting lost in here,” she said with a soft smile.

 

“That’d be much appreciated, Miss Josephine,” C.C. replied.

 

\---

 

Nurse Josephine lead the two men through the hospital to the West Wing. Every now and then, a nurse would brush past them in a hurry or one would give a friendly “hello”. Ricky and C.C. had a pattern going on as they walked through the halls, they’d look around, noticing room numbers and different plagues, not seeing anything suspicious. Then they’d end up looking at each other and shrugging before turning to look at doors again. Not that they expected to see anything out of the ordinary in a hospital, but something surely wasn’t…right in this city.

 

“What can you tell us about Hale?” Ricky asked though his focus was still on the doors.

 

“I’ve got no damning information on the guy, he’s only here a couple of times a week, mainly as help with um.. the deceased, transporting them that is. He also works at Miller’s Funeral Home, you know. Don’t know how he does it, to be honest.”

 

C.C. took mental note of that. “What about Hale himself, what’s he like?” C.C. asked as another nurse brushed past him.

 

“Nice guy, just shows up and does his job. Kinda quiet, too, like your friend here,” Josephine nudged her head in Ricky’s direction. C.C. smiled to himself, she didn’t know how much Ricky actually talked. Well, complained was more the word.

 

The three entered the West Wing, another hallway with more rooms branching off, just like before.

 

“Oh, there he is,” Josephine said, mainly to herself. “Hale!”

 

A man further down the hallway turned their direction. He looked puzzled, then back to a stoic expression as he started walking towards them.

 

“Are you in the middle of anything?”

 

“Not at the moment, what’s the matter?” Hale asked. He was about the same height as Cooper and probably the same age. The most prominent feature on the man was a small scar on his chin, aside from the fact that he looked like he could break C.C.’s back over his knee.

 

“These men just had a few questions for you, they’re detectives from Chicago.” Josephine gestured to the two men standing beside her. “I don’t know much about police questioning, so I’ll get out of your hair. If there’s anything else you need, don’t be afraid to ask for me,” she smiled again. She had a very bright smile, a true kind smile if there ever was one.

 

“Thank you, Josephine, we’ll take it from here, yes. And we’ll be sure too,” C.C. returned the smile. She nodded and started back the way they came, the click of her shoes following behind her.

 

C.C. turned back to the stranger, “Tinsley and Morgan, hello, we’re-“

 

“Detectives from Chicago.” Hale said.

 

“Oh, ha, I guess she already said that,” C.C. saw Ricky pinch the bridge of his nose out of the corner of his eye.

 

“What do you want? I’m in the middle of my shift.”

 

“What do you know about the recent murders around here, Mr. Hale?”

 

“As much as everybody else, whatever they say in the papers.” Hale was quick to respond.

 

Ricky took a step forward, “But you do work at Miller’s, correct?”

 

“Yes. So the fact that I work at Miller’s makes me a suspect now?” the man wasn’t visibly intimidated by Ricky, so he definitely wasn’t intimidated by C.C.

 

“I’m not saying it’s a damning fact but-“

 

“We’re just looking for a way to solve all this.” C.C. said in calm fashion.

 

“You can ask me again on my day off.”

 

“Sorry that there’s people being killed left and right, that must really put a dent in your schedule,” Ricky’s sarcasm made an appearance.

 

Hale looked more irritated than anything, “Each of the murders, I’ve been working here, not at Miller’s, you can check my timecards to prove it. Now, if you excuse me, I have an actual job to do.” he left as quickly as he came, heading back down the hall in the opposite direction Ricky and C.C. had walked in.

 

“Ouch,” C.C. said once he was out of earshot.

 

“I don’t know if I fully trust a man who knows when each murder was of the top of his head, but maybe he is telling the truth,” Ricky turned to the taller man.

 

“You think?”

 

“Yeah, guy just seems more like a dick than anything, but I’m not putting him at the bottom of the suspect list,” Ricky shrugged.

 

“There’s still hardly even a list, but I’ll take your word for it. I definitely want to get more out of him, but there’s no use in running after him right now.”

 

“You sure? I can quite the persuader when it comes to getting information out of men like that.”

 

“If it’s anything like the _persuading_ you’ve given me, I’d rather not see that,” C.C. laughed lightly.

 

“I’m not talking about that. I’m talking more along the lines of using punches rather than niceties. I didn’t have to use that on you to get away with what I wanted.”

 

“So I guess I’d have to say you seduced rather than persuaded, huh.”

 

“If you’d even call it that. You’d get a kiss on the cheek and you’d do whatever I’d say,” Ricky commented with a smirk.

 

C.C. smiled coyly, “I think there were a few different times where I got more than just that.”

 

“…Let’s go.”

 

“Do remind me, you know how forgetful I can be at times,” C.C. grinned.

 

“Shut up, C.C.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it's been so long since i've updated! i finally got my inspiration back and am writing the next chapter as we speak!  
> me looking at cc and ricky still not pick up on their own feelings: oh boys you're really in deep now

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first time ever I've posted my writing online so I hope y'all enjoy!! I know I suck at writing summaries I'm a dork but I plan to keep up with writing this so bear with me!!  
> You can message me or send me an ask on tumblr @madejsbian


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